The Best Christmas Ever
by flashfire11
Summary: It's winter vacation, and the Penderwicks are ready and excited for another Christmas. But this one is going to be much different, starting with a surprise visit from an old friend...
1. Day 1- The Arrival

Skye Penderwick woke up to the disgusting sensation of Hound's tongue on her face.

"Houuuuuuuund, get off," she moaned, still half asleep. Hound continued to lick her face. Skye cracked an eye open.

Another eye, much too close for comfort, stared at her solemnly.

"AAAARRGGHH!" Skye yelled, scrambling away from the eye and falling off the bed in the process. Her head hit the ground with a loud thunk. "Ow." Skye glared up at the two heads sticking out over the edge of the bed. "Batty! What are you doing in my room?!"

"I was just seeing if Hound was in here. . ." said Batty in a small voice. Skye clenched her jaw and tried hard not to roll her eyes.

"What I meant was why were you staring at me while I was peacefully sleeping?! It's nine in the morning!"

"Girls! Breakfast!" Their father's voice floated up the stairs. Batty, relieved, happily hopped off the bed and, carefully stepping over Skye, disappeared downstairs with Hound. Skye got up, grumbling, and followed Batty downstairs after making her bed and kicking Jane's stuff back onto her side of the room. Skye could've sworn that her sister's things just drifted onto Skye's side overnight. She thumped down the stairs grumpily, resolving to lock her bedroom door at night from now on. ln the kitchen, Rosalind was cooking apple cinnamon pancakes, the perfect breakfast for the first day of Christmas vacation. Jane, Mr. Penderwick, Ben, and now Batty were at the table.

"How many, Skye?" asked Rosalind, concentrating on the pancakes.

"Seven," said Skye, plopping down in a chair between Ben and Jane.

"Leave some for me!" her father protested.

"And me!" piped Batty.

"AND ME!" howled Ben.

"Okay, five then. Jane, move this notebook out of my way." Skye shoved the worn blue notebook that was pushing into Skye's table space back at Jane.

"Sabrina Starr crouched underneath the desk. Had someone blown her cover? Were the security goons still pursuing her? Skye, you made me scribble all over the page, don't shove my notebook!"

"I'm very genuinely sorry," said Skye, piling pancakes onto her plate. Jane had decided that it was time for Sabrina Starr to go undercover as a spy, and had spent many days holed up in her room, writing feverishly. But yesterday she had hit a writer's block, and was going crazy trying to get her creative juices flowing again.

"Sure you're sorry," Jane humphed, going back to alternately scribbling in her notebook and taking bites of pancake.

"Daddy, where's Iantha?" Batty asked, tugging on his sleeve. Her face already had syrup smeared on it, even though she'd only gone through one pancake.

"At the University," he replied, reaching for the butter.

"But it's Christmas vacation!" burst out Jane.

"Yes, I'm aware of that," said Mr. Penderwick. "But as you know, there's a big meeting coming up and she needs to prepare."

"Even on vacation?" pouted Batty.

"Even on vacation. I promise, she'll be here tomorrow. She'll want to see- never mind. Rosy, I'll take over cooking those." Skye watched her father suspiciously as he took the spatula from Rosalind and flipped another pancake. He had been in a good mood for a while now, and kept humming and smiling at random things. Skye had caught him beaming at the refrigerator yesterday.

"Are you feeling all right, Daddy?" inquired Skye. Her father looked up, startled.

"Me? Yes, yes, fine. Wonderful, actually." He hummed to himself as he handed Rosalind a stack of pancakes. Jane pushed back from the table, her nose still in her notebook, and padded over to Mr. Penderwick.

"Daddy, could you take me to the library today? I need to do some research on hidden microphones for Sabrina Starr." Their father ruffled her hair.

"Sorry, Jane-o, no can do. I have to be off to the University, too. Besides, I have a feeling that you'll want to stay here in a little while." He winked over the top of Jane's head at Skye, which made her even more puzzled. Skye had no idea what was going on. She absolutely _hated _not knowing what was going on.

"But Daddy, there won't be any adults in the house with us!" pointed out Batty.

"I'm sure Rosalind is more than capable of taking care of you. She's fourteen, after all."

"Yes, but looking after them for a whole day?" said Rosalind weakly.

"Well, I'm sending you some help, anyways," reassured their father.

"Nick Geiger?!" Skye bolted out of her chair, ready to hide in case Nick showed up at their door to make them do football drills, even though there was a couple inches of snow outside. Mr. Penderwick chuckled.

"No, not Nick."

"Who, then?" Jane demanded.

"Who who who!" shrieked Ben, banging his spoon on the table. Their father smiled slyly.

"You'll see. Now, goodbye all. _Incendemus domum non placet_." Skye, Jane, and Batty all looked at Rosalind, who had now been studying Latin for two years.

"Please don't burn the house down." she translated with a wry smile.

"Quite right, Rosy." Mr. Penderwick smiled, kissed them all on the head, then grabbed his bag and disappeared into the front hall. Then he poked his head back into the dining room. "Oh, and please don't go in the guest room. See you later!" After few seconds, the door slammed shut.

"Well, that was odd." Rosalind, who was feeding Ben bits of pancake, broke the silence. Jane tapped her pencil thoughtfully against her chin.

"Daddy was being quite mysterious, don't you think Skye?"

"Hmmm? Oh, yes. Why did he tell us not to go in the guest room?" Skye pondered. Rosalind threw her a look.

"Skye, don't even th-"

"Be right back." Skye was running up the stairs in a flash. Rosalind sighed and sat back.

"Why do I bother trying?" A small hand gently tugged on the hem of her pants. Rosalind lifted the tablecloth to see Batty and Hound crouching under the table. Batty put a finger to her lips.

"Hound hears something, Rosalind," she whispered. "It might be Bug-Man." Rosalind suppressed a smile. Even at six, Batty was still as imaginative as she had been at four.

"Are you sure?" Rosalind asked. Batty turned and murmured in Hound's ear, then looked back to Rosalind.

"He doesn't know. We're going to find out." Batty squeezed past Rosalind's chair, leading Hound out across the front hallway and into the living room, where they would have a good view of the street.

"It smells like vanilla air freshener in here!" came Skye's voice from upstairs. "And the bed is made, and the wood is polished, and there's no Hound fur _anywhere_!" _Very interesting_, thought Rosalind. Maybe their father didn't want them to mess the bedroom up, so he told them not to go in there. But why would he care unless someone was staying with them? Who would be staying?

Suddenly Rosalind knew.

"A car, a car, I see a car!" cried Batty from the living room. "It's long and black, it must be a lime!"

"You mean a limo?!" Jane threw down her pencil and rushed out of the kitchen. Perhaps Sabrina Starr could meet a rich movie star during a spy mission! And anyway, there had never been a limo on Gardam Street.

"It's stopping, it's stopping!" shrieked Batty.

"It's stopping at our house!" Jane yelled. Rosalind carefully picked up Ben and hurried into the living room. Skye slid down the stairs and bumped into her.

"Skye, watch where you're going!"

"Sorry, Rosy." Skye vanished into the living room. Rosalind regained her balance and rushed after her sister. All of the remaining Penderwicks were clustered at the window, ogling the limo that had pulled to a stop in front of their house.

"Who is it?" Rosalind asked.

"I can't see, the windows are too dark." Skye squinted.

"Sabrina Starr could help rescue a movie star from a secret sinister plot!" Jane danced around the living room.

"Shut up!" Skye snapped.

"Skye!" reprimanded Rosalind, not taking her eyes off of the car. Batty leaned against her leg.

"I hope the movie star is nice," said Batty. "And that they'll like Hound, and visit Eleanor and Franklin with me, and take me for walks in Quigley Woods." Rosalind laughed.

"That's no movie star." The others looked at her curiously, then back out the window. A bald man in a suit stepped out of the driver's seat, then went around to the back. Jane gasped.

"A mysterious chauffeur can help Sabrina Starr uncover the culprit!"

"Jane!" barked Skye. "Shut. up." Now the bald man was opening the door. The Penderwicks waited with bated breath and wide eyes- when they saw who stepped out, the breath they had been holding whooshed out. Could it be?

Batty was the first to move.

She wriggled away from Rosalind, flung open the front door, and ran down the path straight into the arms of her favorite boy in the world. Jane was the next to come to her senses.

"COME HERE, YOU-" Jane pelted out the door. Skye stood there, stunned, then looked up at Rosalind.

"Is it really-?"

Rosalind smiled and nodded. Skye raced after Jane and Batty, Rosalind hot on her heels, and jumped into the joyful pile of limbs that was a tickle fight.

Finally, they all rolled apart. Batty ran up and clung to his legs.

"Jeffrey, Jeffrey, I love you so!" she exclaimed. Jeffrey picked her up and spun her around.

"So do I, Battykins. So do I."

"What about me?" demanded Jane.

"And me?" said Skye. Jeffrey winked at Batty.

"Nah, I think I'll stick with Batty for now." Jane and Skye flew at him, resulting in another tickle war. Rosalind hovered over them with Ben, who was clapping his hands, anxiously watching to make sure no one broke an arm or leg or something. Tickle fights were known to be fatal. Therefore she did not see the person who came up from behind and tapped her on the shoulder. Rosalind whirled around.

"Cagney!" she gasped, almost dropping Ben. Cagney held his arms out and grinned. Rosalind gave him a quick hug and stepped back, blushing. Why was she blushing? She'd have to talk to Anna about this.

_Get a hold on yourself,_ she thought sternly. _You already have a perfectly wonderful boyfriend._ Instead, she directed his attention to Ben.

"This is my stepbrother," she said to Cagney. "Say hello, Ben!"

"Duck." Rosalind sighed. Ben knew many more words now, but around strangers he had gone back to only saying his signature word.

"Hey, Ben." Cagney greeted. "You like ducks, huh?"

"Duck." Ben agreed. Just then, Batty, Skye, and Jane noticed Cagney. After the cries of "CAGNEY!" and more hugs, the Penderwicks all led Jeffrey and Cagney up the path to their house, babbling(Jane), asking questions(Skye), or just generally happy(Batty). Rosalind noticed that Cagney had grown since she last saw him. His light brown hair was sticking out from under his favorite Red Sox cap, and he was wearing jeans and a Red Sox sweatshirt. Jeffrey had also grown- he was almost Rosalind's height. He had more freckles than last summer, his green eyes were bright, and he seemed more at ease now, strolling along and laughing with his hands in his pockets.

Inside the living room, the Penderwicks settled Jeffrey, Cagney, and Ben, then remembered the luggage and rushed back out to help the chauffeur, whose name was James and happened to be Churchie's brother, bring in the luggage. After helping Jeffrey and Cagney carry all the luggage up to the guest room, the Penderwicks sat them down and demanded the full story.

Jeffrey and Cagney told them that Jeffrey had been dying to get away from Arundel for Christmas, since his mother was planning a big fancy Yule ball with lots of important people he didn't want to know. He bugged and bugged Mrs. T-D, and she finally gave in to his wishes of going to visit the Penderwicks. Mrs. T-D called Mr. Penderwick and set everything up. But since Jeffrey would be going alone, Mrs. T-D had one condition…

"That's where I come in," explained Cagney. "Mrs T-D doesn't quite, er, trust your father because, um, she thinks he doesn't bring up his, erm, children properly." Skye looked murderous. "So, since it's winter and she doesn't really have a need for a gardener right now, she decided to send me with Jeffrey to supervise him. Oh, and of course I wanted to see you all." Cagney beamed at them. Jane sighed happily.

"Oh, this is going to be the best Christmas ever!"

"Agreed." said Skye. James popped his head into the living room.

"Did I mention that Churchie sent some of her famous pies?" He was immediately tackled by the sisters, and by some feat managed to get them all into the kitchen. Rosalind hovered by the doorway.

"Oh, but it's only noon!"

"Lighten up, Rosy." grinned Jeffrey.

"Yeth, ligthen upth." Jane said through a mouthful of chocolate cream pie. Rosalind sighed and accepted a sliver of blueberry pie from James.

Afterwards, Skye proposed a game of snow soccer. Jeffrey and Jane readily agreed, and they spent most of the afternoon dribbling around the backyard and diving into snowbanks. Rosalind, Cagney, and Ben sat on the back porch steps, talking about the Civil War while James took a nap inside. Batty and Hound kept interfering with the soccer game by running through being chased by aliens and Bug-Men, but not even Skye minded, for Jeffrey was here and that made everything okay.

When darkness fell, they all made their way into the house, bid a farewell to James, who had to get back to Arundel, and collapsed around the kitchen table, laughing and catching up as Rosalind made some delicious beef stew. When Mr. Penderwick and Iantha arrived, they were delighted but not surprised to see Cagney and Jeffrey seated at the kitchen table. There was more talking and laughing all the way through dinner, and they finished up one of Churchie's pies for dessert.

"Better save these," laughed Iantha, tucking the other pies and baked goods up onto the highest shelf that probably only Cagney and Mr. Penderwick could reach without help. "I better not catch any of you sneaking down here for a midnight snack."

They all filed into the living room to watch Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, a reminder that Christmas was coming-in only a week!-and they had plenty of things to do before then.

Skye smiled sleepily to herself as she surveyed the living room. Ben and Batty were in the front row, gazing awestruck as Bumble the former Abominable Snowman placed the star on the Christmas tree. Jane and Jeffrey were sprawled with her on the floor, their backs to the sofa.. She and Jane were leaning on Jeffrey, who was in the middle, still not really believing that he was there, actually there with them. Rosalind, Iantha, and Mr. Penderwick were all on the sofa, and Cagney was relaxing in an armchair.

Skye closed her eyes and contentedly sighed. Jane was right, for once. This was going to be the best Christmas ever.


	2. Day 2- The Tree King

**A/N: So sorry I didn't put an author's note or disclaimer in the first chapter! I kinda forget sometimes...okay a lot. Long-term memory stuff is not one of my strong points. Anyway, huge thank you to Flying utterly for reviewing even though I didn't ask! Not that I'm going to object to reviews of course. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, all rights to Jeanne Birdsall. I'm not good at clever disclaimers, so be prepared to listen to a bunch of lame and pathetic ones.**

"Batty? Baaaa-tyyyyy!" Iantha's voice drifted into Batty's head, worming its way into her dreams. Batty turned over and blinked sleepily.

"But, Iantha, I'm tired…" Batty yawned.

"I'm sorry, Battykins, but you should get up now. Your father has something special planned for today."

"What is it?"

"I can't tell you."

"You could." Iantha laughed her beautiful laugh that Batty loved and scooped her up and began to tickle her. Only when Batty was breathless with laughter did Iantha stop.

"All awake now?" she asked. Batty nodded, still catching her breath. Iantha carried her downstairs and set her at the kitchen table.. All her sisters were there eating breakfast, plus her father.

"Where is Jeffrey?" asked Batty, worried that it had all been a dream. "And Cagney?" Iantha smiled reassuringly.

"They're still sleeping."

"Can I wake Jeffrey up so he can eat breakfast with me?"

"Best to let them get their rest, Battykins." Iantha moved to the cupboard to get some Cheerios for her, even though Batty could make her own breakfast now. She could even make cereal without spilling the milk on Hound's head. Speaking of Hound, where was he? Batty slipped out of her chair and padded down the hallway to the mudroom just outside the back door. Sure enough, there was Hound eating breakfast with his nose buried in his bowl. When he saw Batty, he rushed over and proceeded to say good morning by licking her face. Batty giggled and towed him back to the kitchen, where she curled up under the table with him.

Resting her head on Hound's back, Batty listened to the familiar morning sounds contentedly; Daddy talking in Latin, Skye and Jane arguing about what to get Jeffrey for Christmas, Rosalind humming by the stove, the sizzling hiss of frying eggs, and Iantha opening the refridgerator for milk. There were familiar smells, too, of egg yolk and Daddy's coffee and Hound's fur.

Suddenly Iantha's slipper-clad feet appeared next to Batty's empty chair.

"Where could Batty be?" That was Iantha's voice. Batty stifled a giggle.

"She's under the table." Batty frowned and crouched behind Hound. Skye had to ruin everything, didn't she?

"No, no Batty here." That was Iantha's voice again. "I guess I'll just have to eat her cereal for her." At that, Batty clambered up onto her chair.

"Here I am, Iantha!"

"Yes, so you are," remarked Iantha, setting down a bowl of Cheerios. "Eat up; you have a big day ahead, or so your father tells me." Batty was happily scooping cereal into her mouth when Jeffrey and Cagney came thumping down the stairs, with tousled hair and still in pajamas.

"Jeffrey!" Batty leapt out of her chair and tugged Jeffrey's hand. "Sit next to me!" Jeffrey obliged.

"I suppose I'm just chopped liver, huh?" said Cagney mournfully, but his eyes were sparkling. Batty hugged his knees. "Don't be silly, Cagney." Cagney grinned and ruffled her hair.

"Silly? I'm the silly one?" He said. Batty giggled. "Now, Battykins, where can I get some breakfast around here?"

"Don't you worry about that," said Iantha, sailing across the kitchen with a big platter of bacon and eggs. "It might not be Churchie's, but our Rosalind has some cooking talent, too." Rosalind glanced up from her perch near the kitchen stove, saw Cagney, blushed and turned away again. Batty frowned. She hoped that Rosalind would still love Tommy while Cagney was here. Batty liked Tommy very much, even though he made her do football drills sometimes.

Mr. Penderwick pushed his chair back and stood up.

"All right, troops, now that everyone's here, I have an announcement to make." Everyone looked up. "Now, Christmas is in six days, and I have noticed that we are missing something important. Any guesses?"

"Food."

"Reindeer."

"Churchie."

"No, no, no. Since it is my and Iantha's day off, I have decided that we should get a Christmas tree!" After all the exclamations of surprise and approval had faded, Mr. Penderwick spoke again. "So, today we are going to the Cresser's Tree Farm, near where Eleanor and Franklin are, right Batty?" Batty nodded, her eyes glowing. A Christmas tree! The Penderwicks had never had a real Christmas tree before, always using a fake one that Hound had somehow knocked over and chewed half the needles off last Christmas. "Iantha will be staying here to take care of Ben. Cagney will be, too, as he wants to read some books on the native flora that I have. Does anyone else want to stay?" Nobody raised their hands. Mr. Penderwick laughed. "We'll be leaving soon, so finish up your breakfast." Batty ate the last of her Cheerios, happy thoughts running round her head. They were going to get a Christmas tree!

"Bye, Iantha!" Jane called, waving out the window. Iantha waved back, already a distant figure on the doorstep.

"Roll the window up, Jane, it's freezing," grumbled Skye, even though she was bundled up in a quilted jacket, boots, gloves, and her camouflage hat. Jane rolled up the window obediently, then turned to Jeffrey, who was in between Batty and Skye.

"Did you have a Christmas tree at Arundel, Jeffrey?" she asked. Jeffrey looked thoughtful for a minute.

"I think we used to," he said. "When I was little, I remember marching around a gigantic tree in the entrance hall and playing with the little antique ornaments that Mother probably spent a fortune on."

"How did she feel about you playing with her ornaments?" Skye snorted.

"I don't think she minded very much, until one Christmas I think I wanted to get to the top of the tree, to see the star. I was climbing up the branches when it started to tip over. I leapt off and landed safely, but the tree fell over and smashed all the ornaments on one side. I was sent to my room that time."

"Do you still have a Christmas tree?"asked Rosalind from the passenger seat.

"No. Now, Mother and Dexter go off to fancy exotic places for their holidays. This year they're going to the Bahamas after their fancy ball. It's almost as if they want to get as far away as possible from me." Jeffrey stared out the window, thinking. Batty spoke next.

"I would never want to get away from you, Jeffrey. Especially not on Christmas." Jeffrey smiled at her.

"Thank you. That means the world to me, Battykins."

"We're here!" said Mr. Penderwick, slowing down. Jane hopped out and looked eagerly at the snow-covered fields dotted with tall evergreens. What a promising place of adventure! Sabrina Starr could hide from the security goons here! Oh, wait, but that happened in the city…oh well. Jane was itching to pull out her notebook.

"Look, that's Eleanor and Franklin's barn!" Batty pointed across the fields to a big red barn. "Oh, Daddy, can we visit them?"

"Maybe later, Batty. Let's get this tree first." Their father picked Batty up and, placing her on his shoulders, made his way to a small log cabin not far from the road. Skye, Jeffrey, Jane, and Rosalind followed.

The log cabin had a cheerful red front door that Mr. Penderwick rapped twice. In a moment, the door was opened by a lady with short brown hair. There were crinkles by her mouth and eyes that Jane knew immediately were caused by smiling. Batty bent down from her perch on Mr. Penderwick's shoulders to whisper in Jane's ear.

"She looks nice."

Jane agreed. This woman certainly did look nice. Just the kind of person who could listen to Sabrina Starr's adventures and give constructive criticism to a budding writer.

"Hello, I'm Martin Penderwick," said her father, offering his hand. The woman shook it.

"Margaret Cresser. You can just call me Maggie." She smiled at the children, and Jane felt warmth in her smile. A real kindred spirit!

"Hello, Maggie. We're looking for a Christmas tree." said Mr. Penderwick.

"Please, help yourself." said Maggie, gesturing towards the field of trees. "Do you need help?" Mr. Penderwick shook his head.

"Thank you, we'll be fine." he said turning to go. Jane tapped him on the shoulder.

"But, Daddy, we don't have an axe or anything. How will we chop the tree down?" Her father looked distracted, then turned back to Maggie sheepishly.

"Uh, could we actually borrow an axe or something?" Maggie smiled and disappeared for a minute before returning with an axe.

"Here you go," she said, handing it to Mr. Penderwick.

"Thank you. Batty, why don't you hop down now." suggested Mr. Penderwick, bending down so Batty could get off. But Batty was hardly listening. Jane turned and saw that her sister was staring at a tortoiseshell cat peering out from the edge of the log cabin. Batty ran over and extended her hand to the cat, who stared at it for a moment before nuzzling the hand with her head.

"Batty, come on," said Skye impatiently.

"No, it's alright. I'll stay with her." volunteered Rosalind, bending down next to Batty.

"Okay." Skye shrugged, then turned to Jeffrey. "Race you!" They took off, kicking snow up in small clouds. Jane smiled and leaned against her father.

"I love this Christmas so far, Daddy." Her father put an arm around her.

"Me too, Jane-o."

Skye collapsed against a tree trunk, panting hard.

"No fair! You tripped me back there."

Jeffrey smirked at her.

"Excuses, excuses. You probably tripped over your own feet." Skye launched herself at him, and they scuffled around in the snow for a few minutes. Jeffrey ended up on top, and Skye was stuck uncomfortably close to him, so close she could feel his shallow breaths against her skin. Jeffrey stared back, and Skye felt her cheeks begin to heat up.

"Yoo-hoo! Over here!" Jeffrey quickly scrambled off of Skye, who retrieved her camouflage cap (it had been knocked off) to avoid looking at Jeffrey. Jane was waving at them from a tree little ways away. Skye and Jeffrey walked over, staring in awe at the huge tree.

It was gigantic, stretching into the sky at least a foot taller than the trees around it. It looked proud and majestic, the king of trees. Skye shook her head. What was she thinking? She was starting to sound like Jane.

"Think this is the one?" asked Mr. Penderwick.

"Definitely," said Skye, Jane, and Jeffrey at the same time.

"Alright." Mr. Penderwick swung the axe off his shoulder and struck the tree, which quivered. Again and again.

"The proud tree king was surprised. He had never felt a blade before. But Sabrina Starr was going to use any means necessary." narrated Jane.

"Shut up Jane," said Skye, tackling her sister. They rolled over and over in the snow until Jeffrey shouted "TIMBER!" The sisters rolled out of the way as the tree as it crashed to the ground.

"The mighty tree king has been felled!" hollered Jane, jumping around. This time Skye _and_ Jeffrey tackled her.

"Steady, troops." said Mr. Penderwick, lifting up part of the tree. "I'm going to need some help here." They all rushed to help him carry it back to the log cabin, where they found Rosalind and Batty still petting the cat.

"Her name is Heidi," Batty told them, her eyes shining. "Maggie told me." While Mr. Penderwick payed Maggie for the tree, Jane, Jeffrey, Skye, and Rosalind hoisted the Christmas tree onto the top of the car and secured it with ropes.

"I bet it'll fall off in the middle of the road." predicted Skye, climbing into the car.

"The tree king was still crafty, even when parted from his army of minions." muttered Jane. Jeffrey tickled her, and then Skye started tickling her from the other side Batty shrieked as Jeffrey began to tickle her, too. Packed to the brim with happiness and Christmas spirit, the Penderwick car headed home.

**A/N: Please please review! It's one of my first fics, so please no flames or anything. REVIEW**


	3. Day 2- Ornaments

**A/N: Sorry about the short chapter. I promise they'll be longer later :)  
**

**Flying utterly: Thanks again! I could never forget Batty. I love the other sisters, but it annoys me sometimes when fanfics only focus on the older sisters.**

**Guest: Thank you so much! I've never been called talented before :)**

_**Day 2- Ornaments**_

"My goodness!" said Iantha, pressing a hand to her heart as Jane, Skye, Jeffrey, and Rosalind struggled inside with the Christmas tree. "You had to pick the biggest tree there, didn't you Martin?" Mr. Penderwick kissed her cheek.

"The bigger the better," he laughed.

"Daddy!" came Jane's voice from the living room. "Where do we put this?" Mr. Penderwick rushed to help them set it down. After much shouting and stumbling and Hound barking and pine needles in everyone's face, the Christmas tree was finally set down in the corner. Jane, Rosalind and Skye were sent into the basement to retrieve Christmas tree lights. Jeffrey felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see Batty looking thoughtfully at the tree.

"Why don't we make our own ornaments, Jeffrey?"

"That's a good idea." interrupted Cagney, poking his head into the living room. "Do you have any art supplies?"

"Of course."

"Why don't you show me and Jeffrey?" Batty led them to a closet that was stacked to the brim with glue sticks, construction paper, pipe cleaners, markers, stencils, and more.

"You have quite the collection, Batty." remarked Jeffrey, grabbing some tubes of glitter glue and a stack of construction paper.

"Yes," Batty agreed, going into the kitchen with her arms overflowing with pipe cleaners. "Rosalind says that Mommy used to do lots of arts-and-crafts with them when they were little." She and the boys set their supplies down on the kitchen table, where Iantha was feeding Ben some applesauce.

"What should I make first?" thought Jeffrey aloud, surveying the supplies before him. Cagney and Batty were already making their ornaments, spreading glue and snippets of yarn across the table. Suddenly Jeffrey knew. Quickly grabbing some popsicle sticks and markers, he set to work with a smile.

* * *

When Skye dared to venture into the kitchen at last, it was nearly dinnertime. Everyone else had gone into the living room decorate the tree, and Skye had been admiring it when she noticed someone was missing. Only Jeffrey was still working, head bent over the kitchen table. Skye plopped down silently in the chair next to him, marveling at how messy the kitchen had gotten since the ornament making had begun. She propped her chin in her hands, watching Jeffrey. His face scrunched up when he was concentrating, and for some reason there was gold glitter in his hair, courtesy of Batty.

"I finished!" Skye jerked back, then took a closer look of what Jeffrey was holding out to her.

"A snowflake," she said slowly. It was cleverly made, with silver-glitter sprinkled popsicle sticks sticking out from the center and attached with blue yarn

"Yeah," confirmed Jeffrey. "Now look closer." Skye leaned in. On each point of the snowflake was a word and a face.

"Hey!" said Skye. "Did you cut up one of our photos?"

"Yeah-Iantha said she had more copies. Keep looking. See anyone familiar?" Skye peered at one point of the snowflake. On the popsicle stick in lavender marker was written _Jane_ , and at the end of the stick was Jane's smiling face. Skye recognized it as a picture from Iantha and Daddy's wedding. Below that was Rosalind written in primrose marker and laughing with Tommy, and then Batty written in orange marker hugging Ursula the bear. Under that was Mr. Penderwick written in deep green, smiling in a tuxedo, then Iantha written in dark purple with a photo of her and her telescope, and little Ben in red with his favorite duck, and Hound and Asimov written in light green with a picture of them in the backyard together. And last but not least, written in blue, was Skye. The photo was one she didn't remember. She was wearing a dress, for one thing, and was smiling, actually smiling. Thank goodness she had her camouflage cap jammed stubbornly on her head. It must have been another of those wedding photos. Darn photographers everywhere.

Skye looked at Jeffrey.

"Oh, Jeffrey, it's wonderful."

"Really?"

"Yes. But did you really have to use that picture of me? I'm wearing a _dress._"

Jeffrey laughed.

"I thought you looked nice."

Skye rolled her eyes and playfully ruffled his hair.

"Yeah right. C'mon, let's go put this on the tree." They let Batty hang the snowflake ornament right in the middle of the tree, shining for all of Jeffrey's second family to see.

**A/N: PLEASE REVIEWWWWW! MEANS THE WORLD TO ME!**


	4. Day 3- Rivalries

**A/N: Here's another one! Thanks for all the reviews, and to one of the Guests, James wasn't a typo, he's the Tifton's chauffeur. Just a random OC. Please keep reviewing!**

**Disclaimer:Don't own the Penderwicks, all rights to Jeanne Birdsall. I guess I do own James though...not much comfort.**

**Day 3- Rivalries**

_Ding-dong._ Rosalind looked up from the oven and frowned. Who could it be? Everyone was in the living room, except for Mr. Penderwick and Iantha (at the University preparing for the big meeting again), playing a late morning game of Sorry. She wiped her hands off quickly - she was making chocolate chip cookies - gave Hound her sternest don't-even-think-about-trying -to-eat-the-cookie-dough look, and went to answer the front door.

A tall gangly familiar-looking boy stood there on the doorstep. Rosalind threw open the door and hugged him.

"Oh, Tommy! I'm so sorry I haven't come over lately, I've just been really busy, and when did you get back from your Grandma's house, you told me you were going to be away on Christm-" Tommy clapped a hand over her mouth to keep the stream of words from coming.

"Jeez, Rosy, don't I even get to say hi?" He picked her up and spun her around, almost falling over before hugging her again. Rosalind smiled, almost giddy, and invited him into the kitchen to talk. "Mmm, what is that?" said Tommy dreamily, sniffing the air. His girlfriend rolled her eyes. Tommy could be counted on to be around whenever food was concerned.

"Chocolate chip cookies, of course," she answered, taking her place at the stove as Tommy sat on the counter. Tommy's hand flicked out, snatched a piece of cookie dough, and shoved it in his mouth before Rosalind could slap it. "Tommy, what on earth am I going to do with you?" He laughed.

"You could give me more cookie dough, for starters." He dodged Rosalind's punch easily and leaned back against the cupboards. "So, what's new with you, Rosy?" Rosalind told him all about how Jeffrey had come to visit as a surprise, and got so wrapped up in telling him about Jeffrey that she conveniently forgot to mention Cagney. Tommy was excited, as well. Though he had only met Jeffrey once, at the wedding, he had liked the boy very much, especially after learning he was not interested in Rosalind. In turn, Tommy told Rosalind about how his grandmother had decided to come to Cameron this year instead of the other way around. He was just in the middle of telling her about how his grandmother had yelled at all of Nick's football buddies for disturbing her nap when someone walked into the kitchen.

"Hey, Rosy, Skye told me to steal some cookie dough for her. Oh, hello." Cagney smiled at Tommy, who had suddenly froze. Rosalind silently swore. Why, oh why, did Cagney have to walk in right then?

"Um, Cagney, this is Tommy."

"Her boyfriend." Tommy interjected, looking at Cagney. Rosalind shot him a warning look.

"And Tommy, this is Cagney." Cagney offered his hand. Tommy grasped it, squeezing hard.

"Nice to meet you, Tommy." said Cagney politely, carefully extracting his hand from Tommy's vice-like grip.

"Wish I could say the same for you," Tommy muttered under his breath, quiet enough so Cagney couldn't hear him. Rosalind shot him an even fiercer warning look before sliding the cookies into the oven and leading both of them back into the living room. There wasn't much of a board game going on in there, more of a game where you throw random cards and pieces at people who make you go back to Start, which seemed to happen a lot because there were lots of secret invisible passageways that Jeffrey kept using to knock out Skye and Jane's pieces. He never knocked out Batty's pieces.

When Batty saw Tommy, she ran over to give him a hug (Skye, Jane, and Jeffrey were too busy throwing each other's pieces at each other). Rosalind silently thanked Batty when she saw Tommy's face brighten, but then Batty turned to Cagney and pulled him back to the board, saying "Come on Cagney, you have to help me and Hound win." Noticing the foul look on Tommy's face, Rosalind quickly grabbed his hand and dragged him over to sit next to Jane.

"Hey, guys. So Tommy came didn't go to his grandmother's house after all. He's going to be staying for Christmas!" Nobody really paid attention to this news except for Batty who clapped happily, and Jeffrey, who smiled and greeted Tommy warmly before being attacked by cards again. Rosalind sighed and leaned against Tommy. She had hoped that he wouldn't be jealous of Cagney, but so far that wasn't turning out so well.

"Look! Look! It's snowing!" Batty shrieked, bouncing up and down on the couch. Jane looked up from the Sorry board eagerly.

"Really?!"

"Yes! Oh, Rosalind, can we pretty please go sledding?!" Jane swung around to look at the oldest sister, who heaved a big sigh.

"I suppose."

Everybody whooped. "But-" Rosalind raised a hand. "You have to put on snowpants, jackets, boots, and mittens." Everybody groaned, but nodded assent before rushing to get changed. Jane quickly pulled on her purple snow gear before rushing outside.

It was snowing fast, little puffs of snow falling down and blanketing Jane's shoulders. She laughed and twirled around in a circle, holding her arms out. The snow fairies had finally come to Cameron!

"Jane?" It was Skye, peeking out the back door. "What are you doing?"

"Thanking the snow fairies."

"Thanking the- oh for Pete's sake, just get in the car. We're leaving for Queen's Estate."

"Oh!" said Jane, hurrying around to the front. Queen's Estate was a huge mansion in Cameron that once had a family living in it. But now, the mansion was abandoned, and the doors locked and the gate closed. Outside the gate, though, was a huge hill that was part of the estate. And it was perfect for sledding.

Jane hummed happily to herself all the way to Queen's Estate. The car was packed, despite Tommy having gone home. Now that Jane thought about it, Tommy had been rather grumpy all day. Could that have something to do with Cagney? Hmm…

When they got to Queen's Estate, Cagney slowed down the car and opened up the trunk. The Penderwicks had all sorts of cheap plastic sleds that had been collected over the years. Jane's personal favorite was the long silver one that was super fast. But as she reached for it, someone else got there first.

"Jeffrey!" Jane rebuked. "I was going to use that one!" Jeffrey grinned.

"Too bad!" he said cheerfully, taking off up the hill.

"Ruffian! Scoundrel!" Jane hollered, chasing after him. When they got to the top of the hill, she tackled him around the knees, bringing Jeffrey down, then started to throw snow in his face until he let go of the sled.

"All right, all right!" Jeffrey gasped, staring dramatically up at the sky. "You can have your sled!"

"Thank you," answered Jane haughtily, snatching the sled and sticking her tongue out at him. She maneuvered her sled into a good spot at the top, then climbed in. As she was about to push herself down, a voice said,

"Want a push?"

"Jeffrey, don't you dar-" Jane was suddenly flying down the slippery snow at top speed. She could hear Jeffrey behind her, whooping with delight (he had jumped in the sled at the last minute). Jane clutched the sides of the sled tightly and screwed up her eyes against the wind burning her face. Squinting, she dimly made out a figure at the bottom of the hill talking to another figure. The one with the blonde hair, was that-?

Jane's eyes widened and she frantically tried to steer the sled elsewhere, but it was too late. The sled crashed into Skye, knocking her off her feet. Jane's breath whooshed out of her lungs as her sister fell on top of her.

"Sorry, didn't see you there," said Jeffrey cheekily. Skye glared at him, though Jane could see she was trying not to laugh.

"Jeffrey, I swear, as soon as Jane gets off of me-"

"Off of you? You're on me!"

"Need a hand, Skye?" Skye suddenly shut her mouth. Jane peered upwards to see a tall boy with light brown hair extending his hand to her sister. Pearson.

"I'm fine." snapped Skye, quickly rolling off of Jane. Jane and Jeffrey stood up, too.

"Oh." Pearson withdrew his hand. "Sorry. Are you going to introduce me?"

"Don't be ridiculous, you already know Jane-"

"No, I mean...um…" Pearson jerked his head at Jeffrey.

"Oh. Yes, well, this is Jeffrey, Jeffrey Tifton. He's a family friend. And Jeffrey, this is Pearson, my, uh-" Jeffrey raised his eyebrows. Jane could feel the awkward tension hanging in the air.

"Classmate." said Skye finally. "Jeffrey, Pearson. Pearson, Jeffrey. Satisfied? C'mon, I'm going sledding." She grabbed the silver sled and took off, leaving Jane, Pearson, and Jeffrey to follow behind at a slower pace.

"So, not to be nosy or anything, but when did Skye meet you?" Pearson asked Jeffrey.

"During summer vacation, three years ago."

"Ah. Where exactly?"

"In Massachusetts."

"Yes, but I meant what town or city or something like that-"

"I'm sorry, but I don't think that's really relevant." said Jeffrey coolly. Pearson flushed and looked away.

"So how long have you been in Skye's class?" Jeffrey said brightly.

"A couple years."

"Are you guys friends?"

"Well, we do know each other pretty well. We've met outside of school a couple times-"

"Okay, who wants to race me to the top of the hill?" intervened Jane desperately. The conversation was getting awkward fast.

"Nah, I have to go." said Pearson, already making his way back down. "Nice meeting you guys." Jane waved, then kept walking through the snow with Jeffrey. After a couple seconds, she spoke.

"You know, he's not even friends with Skye. And they only met once outside of school before, and that was for a mandatory project. I remember because Skye kept moaning and groaning about it for weeks-"

"Pshh, it's fine." said Jeffrey carelessly. "Skye can be friends with whoever she wants, right?" He pushed on without waiting for an answer. Suddenly Batty ran up to Jane breathlessly.

"Jane, I lost my mittens! Please please help me find them!" Jane smiled, unzipped Batty's pockets and pulled out her mittens.

"Found them."

"Oh, thanks Jane." Batty breathed, pulling them back on. Jane nodded and looked back towards Jeffrey, who was plowing alone through the snow to the top of the hill. She wished she could solve his problem as simply as Batty's.

**A/N: PLEEEEEEEEASEEEEE REVIEEEEEEEEEWWWWWW!**


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